Agaju Madugba, Katsina
Rampaging gunmen suspected to be bandits struck again in Katsina on Wednesday morning and reportedly abducted four men of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) at Jibia, a border town with the Republic of Niger.
Eyewitness reports said that the Customs men were taken hostage at the Dan-Bedi Customs checkpoint, along with an unspecified number of unsuspecting travellers on the Jibia – Batsari highway at about 10 am.
“The bandits, riding on motorcycles, arrived the Customs checkpoint this morning (Wednesday) and overpowered the officers, seized their weapons and fired gunshots sporadically into the air,” an eyewitness told reporters, adding that, “the gunmen also seized several motorists and passengers and disappeared with them into nearby the Rugu forest.”
When contacted on telephone, the Katsina Customs Public Relations Officer, Peter Duniya, declined to comment on the matter arguing that, “I am on leave.”
